Nonprofit Leadership

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December 9, 2025

Dear Readers,

About a month ago, the Center for Effective Philanthropy welcomed New York Times columnist Ezra Klein to its annual conference. Klein had blunt words for the leaders of civic society.


“I would like to see the people who lead important parts of civil society not be cowards,” Klein said.


And then Klein reminded the audience of what courage has looked like in America’s recent past.


We are not being called to a level of courage or bravery that is historically unusual. Many of us came up, I came up, in an aberrant period of relative peace, where we came to take the fundamental tenets of liberalism for granted. But that’s not what it was like in the long period of the two Red Scares in the 20th century. It’s not what it was like for the Freedom Riders. It’s not what it was like for the suffragettes. It’s not what it was like to try to bring down communist regimes in Eastern Europe. It’s not what it was like to be now or previously a dissident in Russia. It’s not what it’s like to be a dissident in Hungary. The idea that this is somehow profoundly unusual is just not true.


This week’s Leadership newsletter includes two recent NPQ pieces calling on nonprofits to show their courage and hold the line on their missions and their values in a time of increasing self-censorship ([link removed]) within our sector.


Then, ’tis the season…for nonprofit budgeting! We bring you some great samples of NPQ’s extensive coverage of how to do budgets better.


As always, we love your feedback. Email Isaiah Thompson at [email protected] (mailto:[email protected])

Isaiah Thompson

Leadership

Editor


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** Must-Read Articles
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When Funding Is Under Threat, Your Mission Is the Strategy

by Jennifer Johnson

“Leaders warn self-censorship may offer short-term relief at the expense of long-term trust with communities and with donors.”
Read Article ([link removed])
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This Giving Season, Nonprofits Should Address the Chill in the Air

by Jennifer Dresden, Genevieve Nadeau, and Ellinor Heywood

“This giving season presents a prime opportunity for nonprofit organizations to speak broadly about the chilling effect, why efforts to guard against it matter not just for the nonprofit sector but our democracy as a whole, and how we can support each other through it.”
Read Article ([link removed])
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People’s Budgets Insist on Care First—for and by Everyone

by Celina Su

“People’s budget campaigns are essential to help counter divide-and-conquer neoliberal logics and ‘flood the zone’ tactics by the Right.”
Read Article ([link removed])
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Should Your Budget Balance? No!

by Kate Barr

“Break-even budgets are not only not required, but they are the biggest barrier to building reserves and ultimately a financially healthy organization.”
Read Article ([link removed])
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Five Steps to Developing a Better Fundraising Budget

by Dipty Jain and Kate Garroway

“It may be tempting for nonprofit leaders to focus solely on the revenue generating aspect of development. But taking a comprehensive look at the expenses associated with raising funds for your organization’s mission—and coordinating this process with programmatic and administrative budgeting—will reap long-term rewards.”
Read Article ([link removed])
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Making Participatory Budgeting Work: The Equity Imperative

by Rahel Teka

“Today, over 7,000 local authorities worldwide use [participatory budgeting] to decide budgets in various settings.”
Read Article ([link removed])

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Nonprofit Leadership offers timely civic news, equity-centered insights, and innovative frameworks for leaders building a just and thriving civil society. This newsletter delivers field wisdom, leadership strategies, and practical tools to help you lead with intention and create sustainable impact in your organization and community.

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